365 Handstands, One Year

Inversions, for me – anyway, always look so impressive. Yoga is hard enough, but to do these things upside down? Just seemed impossible. So when I saw that Yoga Vida was offering an inversion workshop, I decided to give it a try. This was back in 2014 and I was immediately hooked.

There is something about the concentration necessary in an inversion that I love. Similar to the way I feel in Bikram – if you don’t steady your thoughts on the posture, you will fall out. So when, in February of 2015, I saw that one of my favorite Instagram yogis was teaching an inversion workshop, I knew I had to go. While the class at Yoga Vida was limited to 20 people, this workshop was wall to wall, edge to edge.

Forward again to December 2015 when I participated in an inversion challenge on Instagram that aimed to find a new team member for the Inversion Junkie Apparel team. While I wasn’t chosen – hard to believe, I know – it did introduce me to the Handstand 365 Challenge. It isn’t complicated – one handstand per day, every day, for a year. But that doesn’t make it easy.

I would be lying if I said I don’t hope to be able to handstand in the middle of the room – and hold the posture – by the end of the year. But more than that, I am loving the commitment it asks for. I have enjoyed the small changes I see in my body that are adding up to be me being stronger. I could write all about pulling up and out of my shoulders, tucking in my stomach, trying to get rid of my “banana back” and remembering to point my toes. But honestly, it’s the consistency of the challenge I like the most. Committing to doing something once a day, every day, and then really sticking with it. I tried that with this blog, I lost my way for a while. But I promise I am doing my best to get back on that horse. One handstand, one post, one day at a time.

I am addicted to doughnuts. To offset this, I practice yoga. Lots and lots of yoga. Mostly Vinyasa, sometimes Bikram. I am a mother, wife, reluctant office worker, Mensa member, Ivy League graduate and a strong believer that if you choose to be happy, you will.
You can also follow me on Instagram @notsefatia
Namaste